[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 37, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 1999]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 37CFR201.20]
[Page 382-385]
TITLE 37--PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND COPYRIGHTS
CONGRESS
PART 201--GENERAL PROVISIONS--Table of Contents
Sec. 201.20 Methods of affixation and positions of the copyright notice on various types of works.
(a) General. (1) This section specifies examples of methods of
affixation and positions of the copyright notice on various types of
works that will satisfy the notice requirement of section 401(c) of
title 17 of the United States Code, as amended by Pub. L. 94-553. A
notice considered ``acceptable'' under this regulation shall be
considered to satisfy the requirement of that section that it be
``affixed to the copies in such manner and location as to give
reasonable notice of the claim of copyright.'' As provided by that
section, the examples specified in this regulation shall not be
considered exhaustive of methods of affixation and positions giving
reasonable notice of the claim of copyright.
(2) The provisions of this section are applicable to copies publicly
distributed on or after December 1, 1981. This section does not
establish any rules concerning the form of the notice or the legal
sufficiency of particular notices, except with respect to methods of
affixation and positions of notice. The adequacy or legal sufficiency of
a copyright notice is determined by the law in effect at the time of
first publication of the work.
(b) Definitions. For the purposes of this section:
(1) The terms audiovisual works, collective works, copies, device,
fixed, machine, motion picture, pictorial, graphic, and sculptural
works, and their variant forms, have the meanings given to them in
section 101 of Title 17.
(2) Title 17 means title 17 of the United States Code, as amended by
Pub. L. 94-553.
(3) In the case of a work consisting preponderantly of leaves on
which the work is printed or otherwise reproduced on both sides, a
``page'' is one side of a leaf; where the preponderance of the leaves
are printed on one side only, the terms ``page'' and ``leaf'' mean the
same.
(4) A work is published in book form if the copies embodying it
consist of multiple leaves bound, fastened, or assembled in a
predetermined order, as, for example, a volume, booklet, pamphlet, or
multipage folder. For the purpose of this section, a work need not
consist of
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textual matter in order to be considered published in ``book form.''
(5) A title page is a page, or two consecutive pages facing each
other, appearing at or near the front of the copies of a work published
in book form, on which the complete title of the work is prominently
stated and on which the names of the author or authors, the name of the
publisher, the place of publication, or some combination of them, are
given.
(6) The meaning of the terms front, back, first, last, and
following, when used in connection with works published in book form,
will vary in relation to the physical form of the copies, depending upon
the particular language in which the work is written.
(7) In the case of a work published in book form with a hard or soft
cover, the front page and back page of the copies are the outsides of
the front and back covers; where there is no cover, the ``front page,''
and ``back page'' are the pages visible at the front and back of the
copies before they are opened.
(8) A masthead is a body of information appearing in approximately
the same location in most issues of a newspaper, magazine, journal,
review, or other periodical or serial, typically containing the title of
the periodical or serial, information about the staff, periodicity of
issues, operation, and subscription and editorial policies, of the
publication.
(9) A single-leaf work is a work published in copies consisting of a
single leaf, including copies on which the work is printed or otherwise
reproduced on either one side or on both sides of the leaf, and also
folders which, without cutting or tearing the copies, can be opened out
to form a single leaf. For the purpose of this section, a work need not
consist of textual matter in order to be considered a ``single-leaf
work.''
(c) Manner of affixation and position generally. (1) In all cases
dealt with in this section, the acceptability of a notice depends upon
its being permanently legible to an ordinary user of the work under
normal conditions of use, and affixed to the copies in such manner and
position that, when affixed, it is not concealed from view upon
reasonable examination.
(2) Where, in a particular case, a notice does not appear in one of
the precise locations prescribed in this section but a person looking in
one of those locations would be reasonably certain to find a notice in
another somewhat different location, that notice will be acceptable
under this section.
(d) Works published in book form. In the case of works published in
book form, a notice reproduced on the copies in any of the following
positions is acceptable:
(1) The title page, if any;
(2) The page immediately following the title page, if any;
(3) Either side of the front cover, if any; or, if there is no front
cover, either side of the front leaf of the copies;
(4) Either side of the back cover, if any; or, if there is no back
cover, either side of the back leaf of the copies;
(5) The first page of the main body of the work;
(6) The last page of the main body of the work;
(7) Any page between the front page and the first page of the main
body of the work, if:
(i) There are no more than ten pages between the front page and the
first page of the main body of the work; and
(ii) The notice is reproduced prominently and is set apart from
other matter on the page where it appears;
(8) Any page between the last page of the main body of the work and
back page, if:
(i) There are no more than ten pages between the last page of the
main body of the work and the back page; and
(ii) The notice is reproduced prominently and is set apart from the
other matter on the page where it appears.
(9) In the case of a work published as an issue of a periodical or
serial, in addition to any of the locations listed in paragraphs (d) (1)
through (8) of this section, a notice is acceptable if it is located:
(i) As a part of, or adjacent to, the masthead;
(ii) On the page containing the masthead if the notice is reproduced
prominently and is set apart from the other matter appearing on the
page; or
(iii) Adjacent to a prominent heading, appearing at or near the
front of the issue, containing the title of the
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periodical or serial and any combination of the volume and issue number
and date of the issue.
(10) In the case of a musical work, in addition to any of the
locations listed in paragraphs (d) (1) through (9) of this section, a
notice is acceptable if it is located on the first page of music.
(e) Single-leaf works. In the case of single-leaf works, a notice
reproduced on the copies anywhere on the front or back of the leaf is
acceptable.
(f) Contributions to collective works. For a separate contribution
to a collective work to be considered to ``bear its own notice of
copyright,'' as provided by 17 U.S.C. 404, a notice reproduced on the
copies in any of the following positions is acceptable:
(1) Where the separate contribution is reproduced on a single page,
a notice is acceptable if it appears:
(i) Under the title of the contribution on that page;
(ii) Adjacent to the contribution; or
(iii) On the same page if, through format, wording, or both, the
application of the notice to the particular contribution is made clear;
(2) Where the separate contribution is reproduced on more than one
page of the collective work, a notice is acceptable if it appears:
(i) Under a title appearing at or near the beginning of the
contribution;
(ii) On the first page of the main body of the contribution;
(iii) Immediately following the end of the contribution; or
(iv) On any of the pages where the contribution appears, if:
(A) The contribution is reproduced on no more than twenty pages of
the collective work;
(B) The notice is reproduced prominently and is set apart from other
matter on the page where it appears; and
(C) Through format, wording, or both, the application of the notice
to the particular contribution is made clear;
(3) Where the separate contribution is a musical work, in addition
to any of the locations listed in paragraphs (f) (1) and (2) of this
section, a notice is acceptable if it is located on the first page of
music of the contribution;
(4) As an alternative to placing the notice on one of the pages
where a separate contribution itself appears, the contribution is
considered to ``bear its own notice'' if the notice appears clearly in
juxtaposition with a separate listing of the contribution by title, or
if the contribution is untitled, by a description reasonably identifying
the contribution:
(i) On the page bearing the copyright notice for the collective work
as a whole, if any; or
(ii) In a clearly identified and readily-accessible table of
contents or listing of acknowledgements appearing near the front or back
of the collective work as a whole.
(g) Works reproduced in machine-readable copies. For works
reproduced in machine-readable copies (such as magnetic tapes or disks,
punched cards, or the like, from which the work cannot ordinarily be
visually perceived except with the aid of a machine or device,\1\ each
of the following constitute examples of acceptable methods of affixation
and position of notice:
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\1\ Works published in a form requiring the use of a machine or
device for purposes of optical enlargement (such as film, filmstrips,
slide films, and works published in any variety of microform) and works
published in visually perceptible form but used in connection with
optical scanning devices, are not within this category.
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(1) A notice embodied in the copies in machine-readable form in such
a manner that on visually perceptible printouts it appears either with
or near the title, or at the end of the work;
(2) A notice that is displayed at the user's terminal at sign on;
(3) A notice that is continuously on terminal display; or
(4) A legible notice reproduced durably, so as to withstand normal
use, on a gummed or other label securely affixed to the copies or to a
box, reel, cartridge, cassette, or other container used as a permanent
receptacle for the copies.
(h) Motion pictures and other audiovisual works. (1) The following
constitute examples of acceptable methods of affixation and positions of
the copyright notice on motion pictures and other audiovisual works: A
notice that is embodied in the copies by a photomechanical or electronic
process, in such a position that it ordinarily would
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appear whenever the work is performed in its entirety, and that is
located:
(i) With or near the title;
(ii) With the cast, credits, and similar information;
(iii) At or immediately following the beginning of the work; or
(iv) At or immediately preceding the end of the work.
(2) In the case of an untitled motion picture or other audiovisual
work whose duration is sixty seconds or less, in addition to any of the
locations listed in paragraph (h)(1) of this section, a notice that is
embodied in the copies by a photomechanical or electronic process, in
such a position that it ordinarily would appear to the projectionist or
broadcaster when preparing the work for performance, is acceptable if it
is located on the leader of the film or tape immediately preceding the
beginning of the work.
(3) In the case of a motion picture or other audiovisual work that
is distributed to the public for private use, the notice may be affixed,
in addition to the locations specified in paragraph (h)(1) of this
section, on the housing or container, if it is a permanent receptacle
for the work.
(i) Pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works. The following
constitute examples of acceptable methods of affixation and positions of
the copyright notice on various forms of pictorial, graphic, and
sculptural works:
(1) Where a work is reproduced in two-dimensional copies, a notice
affixed directly or by means of a label cemented, sewn, or otherwise
attached durably, so as to withstand normal use, of the front or back of
the copies, or to any backing, mounting, matting, framing, or other
material to which the copies are durably attached, so as to withstand
normal use, or in which they are permanently housed, is acceptable.
(2) Where a work is reproduced in three-dimensional copies, a notice
affixed directly or by means of a label cemented, sewn, or otherwise
attached durably, so as to withstand normal use, to any visible portion
of the work, or to any base, mounting, framing, or other material on
which the copies are durably attached, so as to withstand normal use, or
in which they are permanently housed, is acceptable.
(3) Where, because of the size or physical characteristics of the
material in which the work is reproduced in copies, it is impossible or
extremely impracticable to affix a notice to the copies directly or by
means of a durable label, a notice is acceptable if it appears on a tag
that is of durable material, so as to withstand normal use, and that is
attached to the copy with sufficient durability that it will remain with
the copy while it is passing through its normal channels of commerce.
(4) Where a work is reproduced in copies consisting of sheet-like or
strip material bearing multiple or continuous reproductions of the work,
the notice may be applied:
(i) To the reproduction itself;
(ii) To the margin, selvage, or reverse side of the material at
frequent and regular intervals; or
(iii) If the material contains neither a selvage nor a reverse side,
to tags or labels, attached to the copies and to any spools, reels, or
containers housing them in such a way that a notice is visible while the
copies are passing through their normal channels of commerce.
(5) If the work is permanently housed in a container, such as a game
or puzzle box, a notice reproduced on the permanent container is
acceptable.
(17 U.S.C. 401, 702)
[46 FR 58312, Dec. 1, 1981]